Every day, millions of people waste their precious time standing in line. Queues (or “lines”) are an old and outdated system to apportion goods or services in limited supply to demand that is at times larger than supply. Why do queues work at all? Why don't they grow forever? They exploit two principles: first, they smooth demand across time, by moving it from peak times to other times. Second, they create a negative feedback loop, reducing demand during peak times by raising the cost (in wait time) of service in proportion to current demand, making it increasingly unattractive for customers to join the queue as it grows longer. But queues which force customers to stand in line suffer from multiple problems. First, they waste people's time which could be better spent. Second, they discourage transfer of demand from a long queue to a shorter one, by failing to provide information on the length of other queues.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,529,786 to Sim (hereafter “Sim”) describes a queue management system which comprises a plurality of portable modules, at least one docking station, a queue manager, signal transmitting means, at least one module detector and a communication means. Each portable module includes a memory means containing a unique identification code, an indicator means, transmitter means for transmitting the identification code over a short range, and docking means for downloading the identification code. The docking station registers the person in a queue by downloading the identification code for the portable module when docked. The queue manager maintains the queue sequence for each queue and includes a communication means for receiving the downloaded code. The signal transmitting means is associated with the queue manager for transmitting the signals to each portable module to instruct the person carrying the portable module to join the queue. The module detector detects transmitted identification codes from any portable module in its vicinity. The module detector is arranged at the queue to detect when the person carrying the portable module joins the queue. Finally, the communication means is arranged between the queue manager and the module detector to communicate any detected identification code to the queue manager. However, the system and method of Sim appears to require that the people wanting to join the queue be given special portable modules that are specially constructed for use with Sim's invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,748,364 to Waytena et al. (hereafter “Waytena”) describes a system and a method for assigning and managing patron reservations for one or more attractions by receiving reservation requests with personal communication devices (PCDs). Reservation requests are transmitted to a computer associated with the selected attraction, which determines a proposed reservation time based on information describing the attraction, the patron, previously-made reservations maintained in a virtual queue, and the current state of a physical queue associated with the attraction. Proposed reservation time is transmitted to the PCD for confirmation or rejection by the patron. Confirmed reservations are entered in the virtual queue. Patrons are alerted by the PCD when their reservation time is approaching. Like Sim above, the system of Waytena appears to require the people wishing to join the queue to possess specially adapted personal communication devices.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,845,361 to Dowling (hereafter “Dowling”) describes a method and a system are provided for maintaining a virtual-wait queue that controls access by customers to a physical resource such as a restaurant table. The method and system are especially adapted for use by customers operating Internet-enabled wireless devices. The system operates by maintaining a virtual-wait queue data structure capable of storing a plurality of entries. Each entry is representative of a customer. The system accepts an instruction from a premises I/O device indicating to either add or delete an entry to the data structure. The system also accepts an instruction from a network connection to either add or delete the remote customer into or from the virtual wait queue. The virtual wait queue system indicates to the remote customer the estimated time left in the queue, freeing the customer from the need to wait in line. While the wireless devices of Dowling do not have to be specially adapted (as they were in Sim or Waytena), they do appear to need to be Internet-enabled, which is not yet a ubiquitous feature for cell phones.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,889,098 to Laval (hereafter “Laval”) describes a method and system for managing admission to an attraction. In one or more embodiments, the system comprises a first queue by which customers may access the attraction by waiting in line and a second queue by which customers may access the attraction in a manner which avoids the first queue. The system includes a first validator for validating an entitlement of a customer to receive an assigned time in the future for accessing the attraction via the second queue, a media distributor for distributing a media to an entitled customer, the media including the assigned time at which the entitled customer is entitled to access the attraction in the future, and a second validator for validating the entitled customer access to the attraction at the time provided on the media. In accordance with a method of the invention, a customer may access an attraction in a manner which avoids standing in a first waiting line by verifying entitlement to utilize a second queue, obtaining a pass entitling the customer to access the attraction at a future time, and returning to the attraction at the future time and gaining access with the pass. In this method, the customer may leave the vicinity of the attraction between when the pass is issued and the future time at which the customer is entitled to access to the attraction. However, the method and system of Laval appears to require the distribution of physical passes with a then-determined access time.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,047,205 to Hale et al. (hereafter “Hale”) describes a method and system for the loading of patrons at multiple attractions at an entertainment includes the first-in first-out line and a priority based line. A cellular telephone is used to obtain and claim priority status. In other forms different priorities are established based on where, when and the number of priority spaces required. Different hierarchies are established for computer controlling the different lines for multiple attractions in the entertainment environment. The system and method also provide for moving people from an area of concentration to other locations Like Laval, the Hale system and method appears to determine the time of event access at the point at which the patron requests entry into the queue. If the queue rate changes after that point, the patron's entry time is not changed unless they re-enter the queue.